WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Gas prices are set to increase due to the havoc created by the Tropical Storm Harvey.
The storm has shutdown at least 10 refineries in the Houston and Corpus Christi areas, the energy hub of Texas.
According to CNN Money, U.S. Gasoline futures, the wholesale prices charged to gas stations, were up 5 percent early Monday, after surging as much as 7 percent earlier. Gasoline futures are now at their highest level since July 2015. According to analysts, it will take about a week for drivers to start feeling those price increases.
The increase in gas prices is due to outages affecting refineries that can process 2.2 million barrels of crude oil into products like gasoline.
'The pop in gasoline prices is an immediate response to the closure of refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast,' Matt Smith, director of commodity research at ClipperData, told CNN Money. 'Fears of a supply crunch are sending prices charging higher.'
Gas prices were 20 cents to 80 cents higher within two weeks after storms like Katrina, Rita, Ike and Isaac hit.
Harvey first hit Texas late Friday as a Category 4 hurricane, the most powerful hurricane to hit the state in more than 50 years. However, it has since been lost its initial strength and has been downgraded to a tropical storm.
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